Bank fishing is mostly a game of access. You park, walk, find a patch of shoreline that looks fishy, and make a cast. The rod that helps most is not the fanciest one in the rack. It is the one you actually brought because it fit behind the truck seat without a fight. I am Carl Pruitt, 58, retired from HVAC work, and I fish Lake Norman and the Catawba River outside Mooresville, North Carolina. I bought a PLUSINNO telescopic carbon combo this fall for exactly that job. It has been in the truck about two months, and it has already become the rod I grab for short bank stops.
I am not going to tell you it casts farther than a two-piece rod or that it catches more fish. It does not. What it does is remove the small excuses that keep a rod at home. Here are ten reasons it works for bank fishing, written from the bank and not the boat show.
A rod behind the truck seat beats a better rod in the garage
The PLUSINNO combo collapses to 1.8 meters and comes with a 3000 size spinning reel. It is the spare that stops being a spare.
Amazon Check the PLUSINNO combo on Amazon →It fits behind the truck seat without a rod tube
The rod is 1.8 meters, about 5 foot 11, and it telescopes down. That is the whole point. It slides behind the seat of my truck instead of riding in a rack where I have to remember it. When I pull up to a bank I have not fished before, I am not digging through the garage. The rod is already there. That sounds small until you count the number of times you left a rod home because it was a hassle.
It sets up in less time than it takes to tie on a lure
The sections extend and collapse, so there is no two-piece joint to line up in the dark. I can have the rod out and the reel ready while I am still looking at the water. It is not a rod I would use for a full day of casting big baits, but for a bank stop it gets me fishing before the light changes.
The medium heavy power handles bank brush and close cover
The rod is rated medium heavy. That is a useful bank rod because you are often casting near grass, laydowns, and riprap where you need to turn a fish. I spool the 3000 reel with 10 pound mono, which is the line weight listed for this combo. It is not a heavy flipping stick. It is a bank rod that can lean on a bass without feeling like a noodle.
The 3000 size reel is a sensible bank reel
The combo comes with a 3000 size spinning reel with a 5.2 gear ratio and a collapsible handle that works left or right. I reel with my left hand, and I did not have to hunt for a left-hand model. The spool is rated for monofilament, and I run 10 pound mono with room to spare. For bank fishing, a 3000 is big enough for bass and crappie without adding weight to the walk.
You can keep it in the boat as a spare without clutter
In my 16 foot aluminum jon boat, floor space is tight. The PLUSINNO combo fits under the bow as a spare without taking over the deck. If a reel fails or a friend comes along without a rod, it is there. I do not use it as my main boat rod, but I like knowing it is in the truck or the boat instead of on the garage rack.
It walks through brush and down banks without a long rod catching every limb
A 5 foot 11 rod is easier to thread through bank brush than a 7 foot rod. The telescopic feature means I can collapse it if I need to push through a tight path. I have done that at a couple of Catawba access points where the trail is more weeds than trail. A two-piece rod would still be fine, but the telescopic rod is easier to manage with one hand and a tackle bag.
The carbon fiber and fiberglass composite keeps it light on a walk
The rod is carbon fiber reinforced with fiberglass composite, and the item weight is listed at 267.05 grams. I notice that on a half-mile walk into a bank spot. It is not so light that it feels fragile, but it does not wear me out carrying it with a small tackle bag. At 58, I care more about that than I used to.
It is a low-commitment way to try a new stretch of water
Bank fishing is about sampling. You may fish a new bridge, a creek mouth, or a pond edge once. The PLUSINNO combo is a second rod I do not mind scratching in the truck, and it is good enough to fish seriously for a couple of hours. That makes it easier to walk a new bank and see what is there instead of talking myself out of the trip.
It doubles as a travel rod without buying a dedicated travel rod
I took it out of town once and it fit in the truck with the rest of the luggage. The 1.8 meter length and telescopic design fit in a car trunk, boat, or backpack, which is what the listing says. It is not a fly rod or a heavy surf setup. It is a packable spinning combo for ponds, creeks, and the kind of water you find on a weekend away.
The rod and reel arrive together, so there is no matching
It includes one rod and one reel. No lures or line are included, so you need to spool it before you go. I would rather buy line I trust anyway. The handle goes left or right, and the reel is ambidextrous. For a truck rod, that means I can hand it to a friend and they can fish it without me switching anything.
What I'd Skip
If you need to bomb a one ounce lure 60 yards across a wide point, skip this combo. A 1.8 meter medium heavy rod with 10 pound mono is not a distance tool. If you fish heavy grass with braid and a big hook, skip it too. It is not a replacement for a 7 foot medium heavy casting rod. I would also skip it if you have had a telescopic rod collapse or rattle and you do not want to deal with that again. This one has been fine for two months, but two months is two months. I would not take it as my only rod on a serious boat day.
I have kept the PLUSINNO combo behind the seat for two months. It is the rod I reach for when I have an hour and a bank, not a boat.
If the rod is already in the truck, you will fish more bank
The PLUSINNO telescopic combo is 1.8 meters and comes with a 3000 size spinning reel. It fits in a trunk, boat, or backpack. Spool it with 10 pound mono and leave it behind the seat.
Amazon Check the PLUSINNO combo on Amazon →